Synchro pair scores big with the crowd, but about those judges . . .

LONDON - They named their program "Jester" because they wanted to entertain the crowd in London with a touch of mirth and a wink to the Queen. And they succeeded, drawing a round of laughter and genuine applause from almost every corner of the Olympic pool.

The judges?

Less entertained.

They left the Canadians off the podium for the fourth straight Olympics, with the tandem of Marie-Pier Boudreau-Gagnon and Elise Marcotte finishing fourth in the synchronized swimming duet final at the London Olympics on Tuesday.

Russia took gold for the fourth straight Olympics with a score of 197.100, ahead of Spain in second (192.900) and China in third (192.870). Russian coach Tatiana Danchenko had a certain way of describing the results; a manner befitting a reigning monarch: "We knew Spain and China are our main competitors, but we also knew they will be mostly competing against each other."

By finishing fourth, Canada actually moved up two spaces from Beijing, but its score (189.120) landed the country in exactly the same spot it held at the world swimming championships last year, fourth place.

"For sure, we're a bit disappointed with the scores, but we can control what we can control," Marcotte said. "We did that today, so we're really, really proud. Our coach is really proud. So we can leave here with our heads really high because we delivered what we wanted to do."

As has been the case in so many venues around London, several patches of empty seats dotted the lower reaches of the Aquatics Centre. The upper stands were full, and full of appreciation for Canada's routine — laughing during the moments of farce, when one of the Canadians knocked the other back below water with a faux mallet, and cheering when the program had finished.

"Once she's going with the hammer on her head - BOING! - you can see it too, right? I think the public really enjoyed the program," Canadian coach Julie Sauve said. "It's a light program. It's funny. The name is 'Jester.' It's a wink to the Queen . . . we decided to do this kind of program here. I think it was very well appreciated in London."

All three Canadians will now look ahead to the team competition, where there is genuine hope for medal. On Thursday, the team will run through its technical routine, with the free program to follow on Friday, under a theme called The Circus.

The technical program, though, has been tailored specially for a British crowd — with the theme of soccer. (As part of the preparation, the synchronized team made a field trip to watch the Montreal Impact play a game at home.)

"When they see the suit, the hat, the crowd will get it right away," Sauve said. "This is thematic of soccer. They will get it right away without music. As soon as we enter, they will know soccer is coming. Watch the deck too, it's really good. It's not only the thematic in the water. The thematic starts with the walk."

Before she left the mixed zone, she smiled broadly and added: "It's a rock. We are very solid. Nobody will break us down."